National Swimming Network? Council slammed for slow response to cycle tunnel flooding; Red Bull moves into cycling with Bora; Waterlogged bike paths; Carrying two fridges by bike (and on head); Cyclocross police presence boosted + more on the live blog

It’s certainly been a wet and windy start to 2024, thanks to Storm Henk’s decision to blow in and cause some severe disruption across the country (cheers, climate change), and for UK-based cyclists, that means only one thing – lots of terribly flooded bike routes.

On yesterday’s live blog, we noted the opening of Sustrans’ first-ever National Swimming Network route in Bath – formerly home to the city’s Two Tunnels greenway, where flooding has been reported since Christmas Eve.

Over a week after the flooded bike route was initially flagged to Sustrans and the local council, Bath-based cyclist and sometime road.cc reviewer Jez Ash asked if the tunnel had been cleared – noting that “there were large objects invisible below the water which are a major peril to any cyclists who fancy riding through it” – prompting the following watery video at the Bear Flat entrance to the shorter tunnel, filmed by Alan Yeodal yesterday morning:

Deep enough now for my Labrador to swim in this morning! About 60cm at the deepest point I would think. I was able to get through with just walking boots before Christmas!
@bathnes @Sustrans pic.twitter.com/HXMyEhti7w

— Alan Yeodal (@AlanYeodal) January 2, 2024

When asked if any warnings had been put in place on the cycle route, Alan said: “No signs as of this morning. There were some ‘chalked’ on the tarmac a few days ago. It would be sensible to have some warning signs at the other end.”

Last night, thankfully, it was confirmed that Sustrans and Bath and North East Somerset Council are “aware” of the new swimming route, and are “in the process of taking action as soon as arrangements can be put in hand”.

However, some weren’t impressed by the delayed response.

“Good news”, said Andy Kelly, “But I can’t help but feel that the response would have been much swifter if it had been a road.

“Crazy that Active Travel arteries aren’t treated with the importance they deserve. Can you imagine an A road going for days without any authority doing anything about a major flood?”

Meanwhile, over in Oxford the Marston cycle path – which was reopened in October after two months of maintenance work – has been experiencing its own issues:

Paging @marstonbikepath pic.twitter.com/GIdGp7Q7im

— Richard Parnham 🏳️‍🌈 (@RichardParnham) January 2, 2024

Marston cycle path flooded to the bend. You will need to cycle with boots to avoid wet feet (and the water is cold!) @marstonbikepath pic.twitter.com/mA34YDN0JZ

— Andy Saunders (@ObjectInSpace) January 2, 2024

And the Trans Pennine Trail – voted the National Cycle Network’s most popular route – is also waterlogged in several places:

The Transpennine Trail is flooded in parts too, so take care if you are on a bike as there may be hazards under the water. https://t.co/t6gaHVKH0q pic.twitter.com/MB4iXgm7j0

— Friends of Carrington Moss 💚🌳🐾🚴‍♀️🐴🚶‍♂️💚 (@FriendsMoss) January 2, 2024

Looks like the award for Britain’s Most Flooded Bike Route could be inundated with new entries over the next few days…

Energy drinks company Red Bull – the brand behind Tom Pidcock and Wout van Aert’s individualist helmet designs of recent years – is now ramping up its interest in pro cycling even further, by acquiring a controlling 51 percent stake in Primož Roglič’s Bora-Hansgrohe team.

Yesterday, the Austrian Federal Competition Authority announced that it was notified of Red Bull’s purchase of a majority stake in RD pro cycling GmbH & Co KG and RD Beteiligungs GmbH, the owner of the German WorldTour squad.

The deal solidifies the already existing relationship between Red Bull and Bora, who last February joined forces to launch the ‘Red Bull Junior Brothers’ global talent scouting programme, which analyses Zwift and Strava data to discover the next generation of pro riders.

> Supplier merry-go-round continues as Bora-Hansgrohe confirms new partnership with SRAM

The news also follows Red Bull’s increasing interest in not just sponsoring but owning sporting teams, with the company now in charge of several football clubs around the world, including RB Leipzig, New York Red Bulls, and Red Bull Salzburg, along with their UK-based F1 team.

It also, potentially, demonstrates the team’s desire to match – thanks to what we presume will be increased investment from Red Bull – the Vismas and UAE Team Emirates of the cycling world at the very top of the sport (an ambition noted in Bora’s signing of Roglič, though arguably hindered by Cian Uijtdebroeks’ acrimonious departure to Visma last month).

One thing is for sure, though – the rider identification helmet game will be a whole lot harder over the next few years…

After today’s news that Red Bull had acquired a controlling stake in Bora-Hansgrohe, the German WorldTour team has now confirmed the deal, which is currently subject to an ongoing review by the Austrian antitrust authority.

Red Bull is planning to expand its involvement in road cycling and is aiming for a partnership with Bora- Hansgrohe,” the team said in a statement this afternoon.

“By becoming a partner in Team Manager Ralph Denk’s operating company, Red Bull strives to complement the team’s portfolio of existing long-term main sponsors, who will remain on a long-term basis. The planned joint venture has been notified to the relevant antitrust authority.

“We ask for your understanding that we will not comment further on the planned joint venture, as we do not wish to anticipate the ongoing review by the Austrian antitrust authority.”

Alright, stop what you’re doing, because this is important.

Over the years, we’ve devoted countless blog stories and opinion pieces to the excellent transportation qualities of bicycles, usually as a retort to the well-worn pro-motoring question: ‘But can you transport X, Y, and Z’ by bike?’ – which, if X equals ornate baths and Y and Z equal all sorts of goods, tools, and services, then you’ll know the answer is a resounding ‘yes’.

> “But tradespeople can’t carry their stuff around by bike” – oh yes they can! How cargo bikes are changing the way people work

But I think we’ve found the definitive ‘Can you carry this by bike?’ video, posted on Twitter last night by a Zaragoza-based cycling account, and featuring a cyclist – purportedly – carrying two fridges, an armchair, and a lamp on his head… while, and this is the maddest part, riding one of those old folding Stridas (I didn’t know they were still around either)…

You'd never do this in a car pic.twitter.com/HgFTv47OSc

— ⓑιcιcletⓞ (@Bicicleto_ZGZ) January 2, 2024

Now, the veracity of the video has already been called into question – those falling fruit look suspiciously Pixar-esque to me – but still, the clip hasn’t stopped people asking the important questions:

What no cycle helmet?😂🤣

— Steve Evans🇺🇦💪 (@foodmakersteve) January 3, 2024

Tomorrow’s X20 Trofee race in Koksijde – which will once again see the ‘Big Three’ of men’s cyclocross, Mathieu van der Poel, Wout van Aert, and Tom Pidcock, go head-to-head – will feature an increased police presence and additional measures to combat unruly fans, the event’s organisers have confirmed in the Belgian press.

The beefed-up security protocols come after the unsavoury incident that marred last Saturday’s World Cup round in Hulst and saw world champion Van der Poel fined €250 for spitting at a group of spectators who allegedly threw beer and urine at him during his dominant race-winning ride.

“If riders are confronted during their recons by people who boo or insult them or who throw beer and urine, they can warn us,” Koksijde organiser Jan Deramoudt told Het Nieuwsblad.

“We are in direct contact with the police, who will make extra efforts to prevent so-called supporters from disturbing or hindering the participants.”

> Mathieu van der Poel spits at “booing” spectator on way to 7th straight win

Deramoudt also confirmed that police drones and additional plain clothes officers will likely be used tomorrow, as part of a clampdown on poor behaviour towards the riders, a switch from the usual focus on inter-fan fighting that the organiser says is “a response to the current situation”.

“It is our duty as an organization to take care of both the public and the riders. Everyone should be able to experience cross-country in a fun and safe way: whether you are supporting, working, or cycling,” he said.

The additional measures have been praised by Van der Poel’s father Adrie and Sven Nys, the former world champion and father of up-and-coming star Thibau.

“This is about taking steps against the negative behaviour of what is – thankfully – only a small number of people,” Nys said.

It looks like Britain’s commuters aren’t the only ones having to contend with swimming pool-inspired routes this week – Saturday’s pro Hexia Cyclocross race in Gullegem, Belgium, has also been hit by serious rainfall, making the course more fitting for a triathlon than even the maddest ‘cross race.

VRT has taken some photos of how the Gullegem CX course looks at the moment - any triathletes doing CX might have a teeny bit of an advantage 😅

The race is set to go ahead still, they're going to divert the course avoid the flooded sections pic.twitter.com/Ah2PctAzA1

— Mathew Mitchell (@MatMitchell30) January 3, 2024

Apparently, the race is still set to go ahead, thanks to some necessary tweaks to the route to avoid the riders having to pack their scuba gear.

One ‘cross star who definitely won’t be getting his feet wet in Gullegem, however, is Eli Iserbyt. The off-road specialist – who spoke to road.cc last month about his gruelling cyclocross schedule – spent the night in hospital earlier this week suffering from dehydration caused by a stomach bug.

The World Cup and Superprestige series leader, who posted a DNF in Hulst last week and didn’t start the X2O Badkamers Trofee round in Baal on New Year’s Day, is expected to miss the next few races, before returning to compete in Sunday’s World Cup round in Zonhoven.

When one London-based cyclist caught a close pass on camera and sent the footage to the company whose branding was covering the driver’s vehicle, he expected an apology and perhaps “some form of disciplinary action”. Instead, he was threatened with legal action for using the company’s trademark without permission.

Now, if that isn’t the start of some (admittedly niche) thriller, I don’t know what is…

Read more: > Cyclist threatened with legal action for posting video of close pass by driver in company-branded van

Ah, all the new UBTs (Unidentified Bike Tech) are starting to come out of the woodwork – or more accurately, the pro teams’ service courses – as the road season looms ever larger…

> Will we finally see a new Trek Emonda and updated SRAM Red groupset in 2024? Pro riders spotted on potential new climbing bike, plus unidentified SRAM callipers 

Still can’t say I’m a massive fan of Trek’s recent infatuation with massive seat tube holes…